Azusa Street Revival 1906

Charles Parham (1873-1929)

Former Methodist pastor.

Parham founded Bethel Healing home in Topeka, Kansas (1898).

The main tenets of Parham's teaching were

• Evangelical style conversion

• Sanctification

• Divine Healing

• Premillenialism

• Eschatological return of the Holy Spirit with…

• The initial evidence of speaking in tongues.

Speaking in tongues (glossolalia) was regarded as synonymous with speaking known languages (xenolalia) and therefore associated with end time missions.

In 1900 Charles Parham began Bible school in Topeka, Kansas.

He taught Holiness and encouraged students to seek for an Acts 2 experience.

They believed that scripture teaches the initial evidence of the baptism with the Holy Spirit is speaking with tongues.

Topeka, Kansas

Agnes Ozman (1870-1937)

On January 1, 1901 Agnes Ozman, a Bible student, was the first to experience the blessing of speaking with other tongues at Parham's college 1901.

Parham and about half the students (there were 34 students) experienced the Holy Spirit baptism.

Parham sought to spread the 'Apostolic Faith' but was unable to gain support until a revival took place in Galena, Kansas in 1903.

William J Seymour (1870-1922)

Parents were former slaves

Raised a Baptist in Louisiana

1895 Moved to Indiana. Contracted smallpox which made him blind in his left eye.

1900-02 Ohio. Accepted holiness teaching on entire sanctification

1903 Moved to Houston, Texas. Attended holiness Church led by Lucy Farrow

1905 Farrow becomes governess in home of Charles Parham in Kansas. Seymour led Church while Farrow was away.

Farrow returned from Kansas speaking in tongues.

William J Seymour could not be a student at Parham’s Houston Bible School because of the Jim Crow segregation laws.

But the door was left open so that Seymour could sit outside and listen to the teaching.

Seymour came to accept Parham’s teaching of the 'initial evidence of speaking in tongues'.

Houston, Texas (1905)

'[The County Board of Education] shall provide schools of two kinds; those for white children and those for colored children.' Texas (Jim Crow Laws)

Influence of the Welsh Revival on the Azusa Street Revival:

Joseph Smale pastor at the First Baptist Church in Los Angelos had been in Wales, and seen the Revival.

S B Shaw wrote an account of 'The Great Revival in Wales'

G Campbell Morgan's pamphlet on the 'Revival in Wales'.

Bartleman corresponded with Evan Roberts.

Roberts wrote to Bartleman

'Congregate the people together who are willing to make a total surrender.

Pray and wait. Believe God's promises. Hold daily meetings.'

Bartleman said in 1905

'The depth of revival will be determined exactly by the depth of the spirit of repentance'. Azusa Street (1980) p.19

Joseph Smale (1867-1926)

English – studied at Spurgeon’s College, London.

Emigrated at age 24 to the US

c.1895 Began pastorate at the First Baptist Church in Los Angelos

1905 Went to Wales to see revival firsthand. Spoke with Evan Roberts.

He held a series of meetings on revival for 19 weeks.

Sought spontaneity of worship like he had seen in Wales.

The leaders of the First Baptist Church thought he had gone extreme on revival.

Joseph Smale left the First Baptist Church.

Early 1906 Began First New Testament Church in Burbeck Hall .

Manifestations of the Spirit took place at the First New Testament Church and meetings were often packed with people, but Smale never did receive the Baptism with the Holy Spirit himself and he never spoke in tongues.

Bartleman said ´Joseph Smale was God’s Moses to lead the people as far as the Jordon, though he himself never got across. Brother Seymour led them over´. (p.62)

Welsh Revival 1904-5

Main character the lay preacher Evan Roberts (1878-1947)

1. Confess all known sin.

2. Deal with and get rid of anything doubtful in your life.

3. Be ready to obey the Holy Spirit instantly.

4. Confess Christ publicly.

At one time he encouraged everyone to pray these four prayers:

1. 'Send Your Spirit now…

2. Send the Spirit powerfully now…

3. Send the Spirit more powerfully now…

4. Send the Spirit still more powerfully now, for Jesus Christ’s sake'

Four points preached by Evan Roberts during the 1904 revival.

Characteristics of the Welsh Revival

Singing for an hour

Less emphasis on preaching

Welsh Revival influenced style of meetings and organisation of Pentecostal Church.

Revival raised up important Pentecostal leaders.

Stephen and George Jeffreys

Donald Gee

Dan Williams and William Williams who founded the Apostolic Church were converted during the Welsh Revival.

Frank Bartleman (1871-1936)

Wrote an eye witness account of the Azusa Street revival.

Bartleman strongly opposed hierarchy in church leaders and denominationalism.

Seymour arrives in Los Angeles (February 22, 1906)

Julia Hutchins and eight families had been put out of the Second Baptist Church in Los Angeles for preaching the holiness teaching of a second experience of sanctification.

The group began meeting at Bonnie Brae Street but the house was too small.

Julia Hutchins began meetings at Santa Fe Street.

Seymour arrived in Los Angeles February 22, 1906 to lead Santa Fe Mission.

Held his first meeting February 24, 1906.

He had not received the Baptism with the Holy Spirit and he had not spoken in tongues, but he began to preach Parham’s doctrine on the initial evidence of speaking with tongues.

Hutchins was horrified and locked door of mission to keep Seymour out.

Seymour continued to lead the meeting at home of Edward Lee and at 214 Bonnie Brae Street.

The evidence of speaking in tongues began April 9, 1906.

Seymour was staying at the home of Edward Lee.

At 18:00 Lee asked Seymour to pray for him to receive the Baptism with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues.

Lee then began to speak with tongues.

Seymour went to 19:30 meeting at Bonnie Brae Street.

Spoke on Acts 2:4

Told group how Edward Lee had experienced speaking with other tongues.

Others including Jennie Moore (Seymour’s future wife) began to speak with tongues.

North Bonnie Brae Street

Meetings were held in the home of Richard and Ruth Asberry at 214 North Bonnie Brae Street.

Meetings were held from the front porch.

April 12, 1906 the porch collapsed and it was necessary to find a larger meeting place.

Meetings began on April 14, 1906

at

312 Azusa Street, Los Angeles, California

Led by William J. Seymour.

The building was a mess. It had been an African Methodist Episcopal Church but more recently was being used as a stable and warehouse.

Breathing strange utterances and mouthing a creed which it would seem no sane mortal could understand, the newest religious sect has started in Los Angeles. Meetings are held in a tumble-down shack on Azusa Street, near San Pedro Street, and devotees of the weird doctrine practice the most fanatical rites, preach the wildest theories and work themselves into a state of mad excitement in their peculiar zeal.

Colored people and a sprinkling of whites compose the congregation, and night is made hideous in the neighborhood by the howlings of the worshippers who spend hours swaying forth and back in a nerve-racking [sic] attitude of prayer and supplication. They claim to have "the gift of tongues;" and to be able to comprehend the babel.

Report in the LA Times April 18, 1906 

Weird Babel of Tongues

New Sect of Fanatics is Breaking Loose

Wild Scene Last Night on Azusa Street

Gurgle of Wordless Talk by a Sister

The San Francisco earthquake April 18, 1906

Seymour and the workers lived on upper floor.

Long room on upper floor called 'the Pentecostal upper room'

Low rafters (sloping beams of the roof) - big men had to bend down.

Bare floors.

The Azusa Street Mission (1906)

Worship at Azusa

No program - allowed Holy Spirit to lead. No priest - all believers are priests. No platform or pulpit. Woodplank altar

People came into meeting without speaking to each other. Found place to pray. People continued in prayer throughout the meeting.

The meetings began spontaneously with testimony, praise, and worship. Spontaneous worship, there were no instruments. Hymns sung by memory. Later - hymnbooks were introduced.

Many people trembling under the power of the Holy Spirit waiting to give testimony. Meeting characterised by people: Shouting, weeping, dancing, 'slain in the Spirit', speaking and singing in tongues, interpretation of tongues.

Someone would stand up to preach. Anointed by the Holy Spirit. Preacher knew when to stop. God gave the altar call.

People fell down under the power of the Holy Spirit all around the congregation. Others rushed to the front. Strong awareness of the presence of the Lord.

Interesting phenomena of worship at Azusa

Heavenly chorus

Spontaneous gift of song

New song in the Spirit.

Sometimes without words, other times in tongues.

Solo or together

Produced a heavenly atmosphere - seemed as though the angels worshipped with them.

Preachers that were not anointed stopped by the Holy Spirit

Breath taken away

Minds wandering

Unable to think

Could not continue speaking.

I feel that the Spirit is about to move.

Glory Glory Glory

Holy jumper

Woman speaking in tongues

Holy Kicker

Come through sister.

Devil saying come out of it sister.

Cartoon

Monday July 23,1906

Los Angeles Daily News

8th & Maple Street

August 1906.

Frank Bartleman rented the meeting hall on the corner of 8th & Maple Street. The building had been vacated by The Pillar of Fire.

The Pillar of Fire were followers of Alma White.

She was a holiness preacher but she opposed the Azusa Revival. She later published a book against the Pentecostal Movement, Demons and Tongues (1936).

August 1906

Apostolic Faith Gospel Mission

Bartleman saw this as divisive. He wrote, ´A party spirit cannot be Pentecostal´… ´from that time on the trouble and division began´.

William Seymour associated the Azusa Street Mission with Charles Parham’s Apostolic Faith Movement.

He put up the sign Apostolic Faith Gospel Mission.

Eighth and Maple Street

Bartleman and Pendleton join together.

August 26, 1906 Pastor Pendleton and about 40 others from the Holiness Church joined the congregation at Eighth and Maple Street.

The Holiness Church had put them out of the building, which had been registered under their name, because they had received the Baptism with the Holy Spirit with the initial evidence of speaking in tongues.

Upper Room Mission

327½ South Spring Street

The New Testament Church splits when Joseph Smale puts pressure on those who have received the baptism with the Holy Spirit.

Those who leave go with Elmer Fisher and begin a new meeting which became known as Upper Room Mission.

Most of the white believers from Azusa Street join them at the Upper Room.

The Pentecostal message was taken around the world from Azusa.

The Apostolic Faith paper was printed monthly from September 1906.

Approximately 5,000 copies of the first edition were printed, and by 1907 40,000 papers had been printed.

Letter from Bro. Parham.

´Bro. Charles Parham, who is God's leader in the Apostolic Faith Movement, writes from Tonganoxio, Kansas, that he expects (D.V.) to be in Los Angeles Sept. 15.`

Parham arrived in October but he did not approve of what was happening at the Azusa Street Mission.

Charles Parham

Parham was delayed from going to Azusa as he fought to gain control of Zion City. Parham did not succeed but during the meetings he conducted there in September 1906, F F Bosworth and his wife received the Baptism with the Holy Spirit. It is estimated that 1 million people received Christ at the crusades Bosworth held during his ministry.

A sign was put up at Zion City in Chicago opposing Parham.

The reference to ´Old Parham from Sodom` refers to Parham’s arrest in 1907 in San Antonio, Texas, for sodomy. All charges against him were dropped.

William Seymour with the leaders of the Azusa Street Mission (1907)

"The colour line was washed away by the blood” Frank Bartleman

www.azusamission.net

William Seymour married Jenny Moore (1883-1936) who had received the initial evidence of speaking with tongues at Bonnie Brae Street (April 9, 1906).

William Durham (1873-1912)

Received Pentecostal experience in Azusa (1907)

1910 Began teaching sanctification as part of ’the finished work of Calvary’

Rejected Wesleyan teaching on entire sanctification.

Denied the teaching that sanctification is a second experience after salvation. A person is both justified and sanctified at conversion. The believer grows in grace but salvation is a finished work.

1911 Taught on the ’finished work’ at Azusa Street.

Revival came again to Azusa with William Durham’s preaching But he was forced out when William Seymour locked the door to Azusa Mission.

Despite opposition from many church leaders, Durham’s view of sanctification became the generally accepted view of the Pentecostal Church.